Christopher woke up with a groan, rubbing his face and pushing his bedsheets away from himself. He swung his legs over the side of his bed and rubbed at his eyes.
It was quiet in the room except for a soft knocking on the door. Chris then remembered yesterday.
His cheeks started heating up, he cried so much!
Oh gosh, what if they hate me now? What if they're angry?! I didn't mean to blubber like a toddler on Hawkeye's lap! So embarrassing!
The knocking grew louder.
Chris got nervous. Should he say something? He could, but it still scared him. He had to think for a moment to translate the words in his head.
"Come in?" he called out weakly. The door opened.
"Good morning. Mail call, " Radar said as he stepped into the room. He looked nervous and gave Chris a sympathetic smile.
Radar had always been good to him. He liked him and always did fun things with him. Chris thought and relaxed a bit more.
Hawkeye groaned and rolled over, pulling his cushion over his head.
"Radar! '' he mumbled into the pillow. " Can you just let me sleep for a little while? I promise I'll do better in school tomorrow."
Radar grinned at that and threw the mail on the man's head.
"If you wake up for breakfast then yes!"
Hawkeye groaned again but sat up and stretched. "Morning" he looked at Chris with a yawn and caressed the small head.
The boy gave a nervous smile and mumbled "Morning"
The change in his son was amazing, he already seemed less closed off than before. He could feel things now, like when he was crying, scared, or angry, he wouldn't get blocked. His feelings were stronger now than ever before though; but still not like before, it was more than that. It was as if they had been building up all this time, and when he got upset they came out in all sorts of ways. Like the panic attack last night. That was new as well.
"Thanks, Radar," He said while looking through his mail. "Ohh, Radar, could you try to make a call through to my dad? He would love to hear from his grandson!"
Chris looked at him with a nervous look on his face. He had to talk! On that phone thing? Oh no!
"You'll do great" Hawkeye winked at him reassuringly. "Don't worry and don't forget, I've got your back. And I know that my dad will be optimistic about this."
Chris smiled slightly but kept quiet.
" Sure thing! Hawkeye I'll let you know when I get through, gotta go now, so I'll be off " Radar said before hurrying from the room.
Chris looked at the floor for a moment before glancing over at his new parent. Sadness came over him when he thought about his parents. Yesterday things seemed so clear, but today they just seemed faded.
"B-breakfast?" The timid Chris asked.
Hawkeye smiled, feeling incredibly proud of his son. "I love to finally hear your voice! You are doing great! "
He pushed Chris playfully and ruffled his already messy blond hair.
After the shock of being pushed faded, Chris giggled.
He always got terrified after making unexpected sounds but he relaxed after looking at Hawkeye and seeing he was not mad or upset by it.
"You will have to talk at breakfast! No more pointing, I want to hear you talk" Hawkeye said turning serious
Chris shook his head, he didn't want that! it still scared him, why did he have to? He gave the man big eyes, hoping to convince him to let this slide and just let him do stuff the way he always did. Hawkeye completely ignored the look.
"How about you start getting ready and I will try to get Trapper among the living."
Hawkeye said, making his way over to Trapper. He shook the man recklessly.
"Hey! Wake up you lazy bones! Come on! Let's go eat breakfast!"
"No! Leave me alone!!" Trapper murmured.
"No! We have to go now! There are no tourists there now and we can see the view better that way!"
Trap looked at him confused but slowly sat up and pulled on the sheet around him.
"Fine! Always with the jokes"
Christopher got up and grabbed his clothes. He looked at Hawkeye, while he got dressed. He needed a couple of minutes to collect all his courage and asked.
"B-b-but, what if I don't know? T-the words.?"
"Hmm... Frans is still here for the complicated stuff and I will help you with the easy stuff! English is fairly easy, but you'll need some practice and you'll have to learn how to speak with others."
"But-"
"No buts. You'll see it will be fine. " Hawkeye said confidently.
Christopher frowned. He couldn't mess things up! He wanted to impress his new father! But he was so nervous! Not to mention all of those people were going to stare at him if he didn't know a word or sentence! He didn't know that much English.
"Okay," he murmured.
"You ready for breakfast? " Hawkeye asked.
Chris nodded slowly and followed the others out of the tent, making their way to the mess hall.
The moment the door opened Christopher felt his throat go dry and his heart beat a little faster. He looked around the room nervously. People stared at him. He felt himself blush, heat spread to his ears. Fear crawled into his head.
"Chris!" A familiar voice made him jump and look towards it.
His dad was smiling down at him but looked a bit worried.
"Hey, Chris. How are you doing?"
Chris tried to get his nerve under control and looked up at Hawkeye. "I'm okay," he answered shyly with barely any sound.
They entered the food line. Hawkeye was incredibly proud of Chris, he looked as if he was fighting a panic attack. But he did point to the food and took a deep breath and said
"That s-s-stuff please" Igor handed the scrambled eggs over to the boy's tray.
"So you can talk, heh! Took you some time! Guess you're not stupid at all" The enlisted man said.
"Igor, if you don't want to wake up tomorrow with all this scrambled egg inside your clothing trunk, you better be nice to my kid! " He looked around the tent. "That goes for all of you!"
"Yes sir, I wasn't being mean." Igor tried.
Hawkeye just huffed and gave Igor a Don't-mesh-with-me look and moved them to a table.
"Ohh there's Sidney and Frans!" He said excitedly. "Hello, guys!"
Chris sat down next to him on the bench.
Freedman sat across from them. "Hi there Angel, How are you today?" The two men looked at Chris expectedly.
Chris felt himself blush, he wasn't a mental case! It just felt really real yesterday! They must think I'm such a crybaby. Looking back at the man he noticed they wanted him to talk. Hawkeye had his eyebrow raised.
He sighed deeply.
"Okay, I think," answered Chris.
"Ohh he is doing great! He did speak to Igor and Radar already." Hawkeye said, smiling.
Chris resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He whispered, "Omdat het moest van you." Frans heard him and chuckled.
Hawkeye looked confused. "What? What did you say?"
Chris got bright red, he didn't want to say it, maybe his new dad would get mad or disappointed! He didn't want to be disrespectful. He started to fidget nervously with his shirt. Anxiety started to rise.
"Sorry" he added quickly. Making the three men more confused.
"He wasn't rude or anything, he said: because you made me. Frans said, taking a bite of his food.
"Why are you sorry?" Sidney asked thoughtfully
"I thought he was going to be mad…" Chris whispered shyly looking at the floor.
Hawkeye just laughed and ruffled Chris's hair. " You can say whatever you want, as long as you are respectful. I'm not easy to disappoint. In case you haven't noticed, I'm your new dad, and I love you, I will not hurt you or get mad about what you're saying. I could smack you if you're disrespectful though"
"W-what is d-d-disrespectful?" The boy asked timidly.
"Onbeleefd" Frans translated and Chris nodded with understanding. He was never mean or rude to people, so that's easy. He felt himself calm down a little.
Sidney turned to Chris and said.
"You will get over your fear of speaking Angel, we just need to work on it. I want today to work out a plan for Chris. And we're making the adoption official. Well, we will be signing today, it still needs to be notarized. But then Hawkeye would be your official dad."
Chris didn't understand the whole thing Sidney said, but he got the last part. He got a huge grin.
He looked at Hawkeye who smiled back at him. "Yes, you can call me dad!"
Chris had not been this happy in a long time. It felt like he could explode from happiness. He didn't dare to call Hawkeye dad at the moment, he was afraid to say it out loud. But it was good to know that Hawkeye seemed to want that.
"When are you guys leaving?" Hawkeye asked the two men.
"You want me gone already? " Sidney responded with an amused smile. "I thought you were going to at least give me another chance to win back some money!!"
"If you win any more money I swear I am going to kick you out of here!" Hawkeye jokes. " But no, I don't want you guys gone, I would like you guys to stay for the day at least."
"We were planning on leaving tomorrow, I thought I was needed today. But it seems that Chris is doing fine without me. We still need to talk about what Chris needs." Sidney told him.
"And I don't mind staying also, I wouldn't be seeing Chris for a long time after this," Frans said a bit sad.
Radar joined the table with a big tray filled with food.
"Psychologically that kind of eating indicates hostility, aggression, and destructiveness," Hawkeye told Trapper, referring to Radar who was eating fast and a lot.
"Why don't we get him to eat North Korea? What he doesn't finish, he can take home in a doggy bag."
"Do you mind!" Radar did not seem amused.
After a while, Chris stopped listening until he heard something that made him pay attention.
"He will need time to recover, but he's doing great, maybe he can travel to my dad in Maine after a week or two." Hawkeye was telling.
"You're going to have trouble getting him to leave. He won't go that easily." Sidney replied the man looked at Chris. He must have seen the look of terror in the boy at the thought of leaving.
"It's in a couple of weeks, so you still have time to get used to it. And you will love it there. Your new grandfather got your room ready, and your school books. You will first get your English up to date and then we can get you homeschooled till you are at the same level as the other kids your age. You missed about two years, so it will be okay, I promise. "
Chris took a moment before he gave a nod. He was not convinced but the nod seemed to satisfy Hawkeye. He wasn't going anywhere, where Hawkeye wasn't.
The four of them headed to the Swamp, Trapper went to post up, to start his rounds as he traded shifts with Hawkeye.
Hawkeye couldn't wait to sign those adoption papers.
Now that everything has calmed down, he was sure that Christopher would be perfectly safe with them. As he said, he knew how important it was to have a family. Especially since Chris has been through enough already. If he could help it, Christopher wouldn't be alone ever again. After all, it wasn't easy for him. Especially not when he was having such trouble expressing himself.
Entering the Swamp, Hawkeye took a seat on his chair and invited the others to do the same.
"Okay, we need to discuss some important stuff here."
Said Sidney, who was taking out the papers from his bag.
"First, let's sign the papers! Everyone wants to get that done first. He handed the paper to Hawkeye who took it and started reading.
He got handed a pen and started writing.
"Done!" he replied with a huge grin.
Frans took the papers and looked.
"Christopher Wouter Pierce. That's a nice name, thank you for including his birth name." he said, a bit emotional, this made him happy and sad at the same time.
"Well I'm not just adopting him, but also his family. I promise that after the war we'll visit you guys. Chris needs to know you guys. To know he has a family, " Hawkeye replied.
Frans looked at Hawkeye with gratitude before he turned to Chris and said. " Weet je het zeker?" (Are you sure?)
Chris nodded, yes he was sure! He liked Frans as well as his grandmother now he could remember them, but he wanted to stay with Hawkeye, he knew the man not to hurt him. And that meant everything.
Frans smiled and with a slightly sad expression signed the papers.
"So, now it has to be notarized, but it's pretty much official. Congrats you're a father." Sidney told Hawkeye as he put the now signed papers in his bag.
"Thank you, Sidney! I love Christopher. He's a wonderful boy." Hawkeye was filled with happiness at the thought that now he had his son.
He gave a nervous red-faced Christopher a hug. Chris didn't know exactly what was said but he understood that Hawkeye was now his dad, and they seemed happy about it. Which made Chris very happy himself, he would stay no matter what, but to know Hawkeye liked him too meant everything.
"He's your son. It's time to take him home to America." Sidney gave Hawkeye a huge smile.
"But you guys still have a lot of work to do regarding Chris's emotions and panic attacks." Dr. Freedman told them. "I think you'll be able to take care of him very well. He's very good at following instructions. The fact that he doesn't like talking or loud noises will need some time, as well as panic attacks.
"I'll handle it, no! we will handle it!" Hawkeye said, pulling Chris to his side.
"Well, it looks like you already are. But just remember don't give him too much pressure when you are ready to start the first step in his life." Sidney added while getting something from his bag.
"I got something for you or your father, it's just some advice I think will help, to help Chris adjust." Sidney handed the sheet to Hawkeye.
"I got help from a child psychiatrist with this. He says these are the main points, Chris needs to adjust to life in the states."
Hawkeye looked at the paper. It was a clear list. Chris will need time, understanding, and stability. Time to get ready for things, let Chris know things beforehand. Understanding, make sure Chris understands and explains things. And for stability, he needed fixed hours for eating, sleeping, and schoolwork. Make it as normal as possible.
Didn't seem too hard to do. Hawkeye thought.
"The fixed hours will also work for nightmares and anxiety attacks. Even with the blown-out panic attacks." Sidney told him. It would be better to start with that here as well so that he has something that stays the same as he moves to the states."
Hawkeye nodded, they would need to work on that.
Frans got out of his bag a small wooden box. And gave it to Chris. "Some pictures and things from your parents." He said with a sad smile. "I already have time to grieve their loss, but you haven't. If you are ready for it, you can look at them. You also can always write to me, I got my address and phone number in there as well."
Chris took the box with shaky hands. Tears welled up. He didn't want to cry! But he got so sad, he missed his parents, now that he could remember them. He still got that image of his father's face with the bullet hole flashing in his mind every once in a while. He cried so much already but he couldn't help it as he sniffled loudly and started crying.
Frans looked down for a moment then sat beside him and pulled the small boy in his arms.
"Hawkeye I also got some Chris baby pictures, I don't get much of them but I come bearing childhood stories of his as well." Frans said holding a couple of pictures. He handed them to Hawkeye.
"You sure he isn't gonna flip out when he sees them?" Hawkeye asked him. "I think not, he's alone in those pictures." Frans replied, smiling at the young boy still holding onto his shirt.
Chris felt silly for not letting go, but he was still sad and Frans knew his parents, he felt a bit closer to them when he was with Frans.
After that Frans started to tell a childhood story about Chris as a young boy.
"So you know what I used to call Chris? Ukkie. That means little or baby. At first, I didn't like him because he would always follow me around. Then one day I was walking towards my bike and he suddenly ran in front of it and stopped me from getting on it. After the second time like this, I finally realized he wanted to come with me. So him being five and me being fourteen, I took him with me not thinking about my grandmother or Chris his parents. "
Hawkeye shot Chris a loving look filled with entertainment.
" It took them two hours to find us, we were playing in the park. Just throwing the ball around. Boy! Was I startled when I saw my mom with her spoon standing there with a very angry expression? With such a big spoon!" He showed how big the spoon was with his hands. Chris's eyes got big, making the other men chuckle.
"Chris got a stern talking to and a smack, but my mom attacked my butt with that spoon till I got my stuff and bike ready and was ready to go. "
Hawkeye let out a loud laugh, making Chris jump up, he liked hearing the story but still felt sad. He sighed and moved over to Hawkeye. Without saying a word, Hawkeye embraced the boy and got him seated on his lap. The man was very protective of the young boy. It made Chris feel special.
"Are you okay?" Hawkeye asked softly after a while. Chris nodded.
Frans started another story, this one about Chris staying over and him finding the fridge at 4 years of age.
"Let's just say he found the fridge and got distracted by its contents. Stuff was everywhere, eggs, cheese, lettuce, he even threw the apple juice to the other side of the room. And of course, I had to clean it up. Chris only got a bath and a stern talking to"
After a couple of stories, they heard that Radar got the call through to Hawkeye's father.
The phone call to his new grandfather almost gave Chris a panic attack. The only thing he managed to say before he started hyperventilating was "hello " and " I-i I don't know. Hawkeye took the call over at that point and embraced the boy and calmed him down. Hawkeye's father knew about Chris' problems, and being a doctor as well, could offer some advice. They settled on bedtime and time for dinner and breakfast.
Chris then went over to Radar for some comic book reading together. Radar still did the voices, but Chris also tried to read some out loud. Radar was encouraging, and always nice of course. He felt a bit like a big brother.
Hawkeye expressed how everything went with Chris and himself. He was glad to hear his dad's voice. He told the man about Chris his work plan, so to speak. What he was doing today and what his dad could do as Chris got to him. The call was cut off rather quickly, but that's the war for you.
Hawkeye told Chris it was okay to stay with Radar but they both followed the doctor back to the Swamp as they decided to play poker.
As they were setting the table ready, Chris got them their drinks. Which earned him a confused look from Frans.
Sidney and Frans sat down as Hawkeye, Radar and Trapper sat down at the opposite end of the card table from them and picked up one of the cards. He began shuffling it expertly, knowing exactly how much money he had left. After several minutes of small talk, Hawkeye asked Sidney. "So it's better to start with a bedtime today? There aren't any wounded coming and I'm free of duty for today. So it should not be difficult, but what about the times there are wounded? how are we doing that?"
Sidney did not look away from his cards, he took a sip of his drink and said.
" I'll raise! I believe Chris is brave enough to sleep alone here, while you are working elsewhere. He's just not allowed out of bed after bedtime. Easy as that. How you gonna handle that is yours to enjoy. Parts of being a parent.
"I'll fold, what is a good bedtime for a 10-year-old? " Hawkeye said, throwing his cards down.
At that moment the door opened and Trapper entered. He stretched his arms above his head. "Long day at the office, dear!" He said. As he lowered his arms Chris handed him a drink.
"Why thank you, kiddo. Great kid! " he said, slamming his now empty glass down. Chris immediately got him a refill.
"Chris, you work on your school books, okay? You don't need to serve us." Hawkeye said gently. Chris just did as told. He felt sad, they didn't seem to like his help.
Trapper joined the game. "Okay, sports fans, you ready for the next hand?" Hawkeye said, shuffling the cards. "Because my last hand looked more like my foot."
Radar opened for 5 and looked at his cards, the rest of the man called.
"I'm in shorty! " Hawkeye said
"Stop making fun of my height!" Radar said indignantly.
"What height? You have no height to make fun of. Go get some height. We'll make fun of it."
Radar glared at Hawkeye but got his revenge on the man by winning this round. With a big grin, he was collecting his new money.
But before Hawkeye could make his remark, Klinger entered the Swamp. He had some reports for Radar. He was wearing a white skirt with big yellow flowers, and a yellow blouse with a ribbon on the front.
Chris looked up at the sound of the door opening and closing. He got a smile when he saw Klinger walk in. He loved the clothes the man was wearing, the big yellow flowers on the flowy skirt are beautiful.
"Hey, buddy! How are ya feeling?" The man asked as he sat down.
"You had a rough day yesterday, didn't you? Hope you are okay now!"
Chris blushed. " I-i-am fine"
" Whooh you're talking! That's great, kid! And such a nice voice as well." The man got a big grin.
"C-can I feel the flowers?" The timid voice of Chris asked.
"You mean my skirt? Yeah sure kid, I don't mind.
He nodded back as a thank you, and let his fingers run through the fabric of the skirt. He loved the color, but it made him sad also. The color reminded him of his mom's hair. She was also beautiful. He loved to wear something like this, not a skirt though, he didn't like that. But the blouse! or a blouse just like the skirt, with the big flowers. Maybe with lace or ribbons as well.
The tent got quiet and Chris noticed the adults were looking at him a bit worried. Chris quickly withdraws his hand. He didn't know why people looked at him funny, but they seemed to find him weird or he was doing something weird. I hope they are not mad! He felt his face burn and his breathing quickened.
" Uh. Klinger... Do you mind a little constructive criticism?
"No, sir."
"First of all, it's gorgeous. It's so easy to go overboard with that, but it's tasteful without being gaudy." Hawkeye continued. He was subtly trying to get the attention away from Chris.
"Thank you, sir," Klinger said, blushing a little and feeling proud.
"Just one suggestion, you must wear a slip! With the sun behind you, I could see clearly through your shorts."
Everyone laughed, and Frans almost choked on his drink. Making Radar laugh out loud.
"Yes, sir, of course, and I've got so many slips in my tent," Klinger replied before making his escape.
Frans was still looking at his cards. He felt a bit uncomfortable with a man in a skirt. He probably was one of those people, not that he minds, it's their business. But he didn't want to see it. It's weird and it made him uneasy. He was glad the man left. Chris's fascination with the skirt also worried him a little. But Chris was too young for any of that.
Sitting around the table the conversation stirred towards the other personnel of the 4077th.
" I hope they don't give too much attention if Chris gets a panic attack or something" Frans was saying. "They won't have to give him any special treatment, but you know, he gets nervous when people look at him".
Radar nodded and said. "He has enough to worry about without getting teased. Especially from people who feel like his friends."
Hawkeye immediately added. "Won't happen! Because I won't let it! And besides, nothing surprises anybody here!"
" Oh really? " Sidney asked.
"Yes! I'm telling you, I could walk around this compound, I bet you guys, I could walk into that mess tent, order dinner, stark-naked, nobody would pay any attention to me."
Radar looked shocked. "Naked?" he asked " Oh boy!"
"Sidney! Is he crazy?" Trapper asked, getting only a shrug in reply.
Chris watched with interest, he didn't get the word naked and he was a bit afraid to ask.
Frans burst into laughter, making Chris curious about what was happening.
" F-frans? " He tried, after getting the man's attention he took a big breath and asked," Wat is naked?"
" Bloot Of naakt!"
Chris's eyes got wide, why would he want to order dinner like that? The shocked expression of the child got the guys laughing out loud again.
"I betcha 50 bucks!" Hawkeye continued. Trapper got a huge grin as he accepted the bet.
A couple of minutes later Hawkeye was completely stripped, Chris looked with an open mouth as Hawkeye stood naked with only his captain hat and boots. Frans put his arms around the boy, he looked amused by all this and kept laughing. They couldn't laugh at the mess hall unless the people noticed Hawkeye, that was the best of course. But Frans knew that if Chris ever got too much-unwanted attention, Hawkeye would just try to get all the attention on him. Which will work if he does stuff like this.
Radar couldn't watch at all. He had his eyes covered but kept snickering. Sidney was writing in his little notebook, he observed the people and Chris. The boy did great, he was very scared but he kept strong. He will grow up to be a stable adult if they keep a close eye on his mental growth. He looked at Trapper who gave Hawkeye a drink. " One for the road, as it were."
"I have always relied upon the kindness of strangers." Hawkeye said, taking a sip.
" We don't usually serve people without neckties. " Trapper said with a grin before drinking his drink as well.
Radar laughed at that, he still couldn't look at the naked man.
After that Hawkeye walked out of the tent. The rest of them followed at a distance. The completely naked doctor walked through the compound without getting any reaction.
Hawkeye entered the mess hall and got a food tray. He stood in the food line when the rest of the guys entered the mess hall.
They all looked around with astonishment as nobody seemed to notice the nude man standing in the food line.
They headed over to the man, getting in the line for food as well. They stood there for a couple of seconds before someone dropped a food tray. He saw the bare butt standing in the food line and was shocked.
People seemed to wake up at that point and started to laugh, finally noticing the doctor. Some nurse screamed and ran out of the hall.
Wolf whistles could be heard and people even started clapping.
Radar burst into laughter, getting Frans to join him.
"50 bucks." Trapper said delightedly to the man.
"I left my pockets back in the Swamp," Hawkeye replied glaring back at Trapper.
Chris walked to Hawkeye and tapped his arm. After he got the man's attention the young boy asked
"W-w-why do you do this?" At that several adults started laughing harder. Hawkeye quickly hid his private parts with the food tray.
Before Hawkeye could walk out, they passed Klinger in a green dress with an orange hat.
"Now that's tasteful without being gaudy," Klinger said pointing to the naked doctor.
After a couple of minutes Hawkeye entered the mess hall again but this time he was dressed. He handed Trapper the 50 bucks.
While they were eating dinner, Hawkeye explained to Chris and Sidney what he decided. Bedtime would be at ten. He got together with Margaret to come up with a plan for the O.R.
"Margaret started training two nurses to take over if I need to take Chris back to bed. They are learning to close the patient up or to keep the patient stable. It would only be for some days, as I hope Chris will listen to me eventually. " Hawkeye said, looking at Chris.
Chris looked a bit confused so Hawkeye explained.
"You will be going to bed at ten tonight and you stay there the whole night. Unless you need to use the latrines or got a nightmare of course. But other than that you are not allowed out of bed. Do you understand?"
"W-why?" Chris asked, making Hawkeye really proud. This is his first day of speaking and he's asked things without too much fear.
"Well, you're a child, and children need sleep, and stability. So even if I have to work, you will stay in bed from 10 till morning."
Chris shook his head. No, he didn't want that!
"Ohh yes, mister! You will be staying in bed if you don't want a smack on your tushy! Understood!" Hawkeye said, giving his child a serious stern look.
Chris got bright red and nodded quickly. He didn't understand the term tushy but he got the general meaning. He picked up his fork to start eating again, hoping the man would drop this conversation.
"I want a verbal answer! Young man." Hawkeye said sternly.
"Yes sir," Chris mumbled blushing, he hoped his dad would stop this. He hated this!
Hawkeye was pleased that his kid knew how to speak politely. He probably picked that up by the way soldiers spoke. He caressed the kid's head affectionately. He added his attention back to Sidney and said. "So I hope that will work. I can only take a couple of minutes to get Chris back to bed, but I hope it will be enough. Sidney, how do I know when Chris is ready to go to the states?"
Sidney looked thoughtful. " I don't think he will be ready anytime soon, but he still needs to go. It's not safe here. I advise two weeks maybe but look at how he reacts to the idea. Talk to him about it."
Hawkeye nodded, he needed a plan for this and he needed to send a telegram to his father about it.
Later at the Swamp, the guys were drinking and lounging around. Putting Chris to bed proved to be easy, the boy slept after ten minutes of Hawkeye babbling. Sidney and Frans stayed for a couple of hours after that.
Hawkeye liked Frans, and the stories he had to tell about Chris. Linda, Chris his mother, was a modern woman who fell in love with the quiet new cameramen. Even after getting married and being pregnant, she wanted to stay working, which lost her the support of many, but not the support of her loving husband Harold. They took the small baby to several countries, filming the animals there. It turned out the public loved this little family show. Even the shots were Chris as a little boy interrupted sometimes. Frans told him he would send some bloopers they got on tape when he was back home.
After the two men left Hawkeye got to bed himself, he moved around carefully so he didn't wake up Chris.
The boy lay on the bed next to him, he was very glad that Chris had come into his world.
Hawkeye kissed Chris's head, snickering a bit at the annoying sound the boy made in his sleep.
He felt extremely happy, Chris didn't seem too bad with his fear, and with Chris behaving great during his first bedtime, he felt positive over tomorrow as well, maybe he didn't even need the extra nurses.
And with that thought, he fell asleep listening to his son breathing.
